After the empress transmigrated, she became the judge of the entertainment industry.

"Alright, you're the one who won't even help, yet you're still whining." Ye Jin'er stopped the conversation from going any further. "What do you mean by saying these things about your brother's cooking? It's one thing to betray us, but are you going to betray him too?"

As he spoke, he added a mocking smile.

"Siqing, that's not what I meant..."

Ye Siqing comforted her in a low voice, and the others ignored her and moved on to the next group.

Pan Hongyu's group was more home-style, making Mapo Tofu, Braised Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetables, Steamed Fish Head with Chopped Chili, Dry-fried Green Beans, and Three Delicacies Vermicelli Soup. The presentation and taste were both average, with nothing particularly noteworthy to comment on.

Pan Yongfu was particularly enthusiastic about praising his sister at this moment, while Yin Xiangming, sitting in the corner behind him, really wanted to roll his eyes, but he managed to restrain himself.

He had seen it all since he was a child; his uncle relied entirely on his smooth talk to convince his mother to listen to him in everything.

It's the same now. He stands aside, only talking without lifting a finger, and in the end, it all seems to be his credit.

Then it was Ji Wan's group's turn... Ji Wan should have had no problem completing five dishes, but Deng Lingxuan volunteered to help but messed things up, and Gao Feibai was pointing fingers from the side, so they almost didn't finish.

Everyone stared in silence at the two plates of lettuce salad, egg and ham sandwiches (which seemed to have appeared there for no apparent reason), and three other dishes that had nothing to do with the salad: braised cabbage and tofu, braised pork with dried bean curd, and pickled radish and old duck soup.

"This is what I made..." Deng Lingxuan messed up and ruined some of the ingredients, so she had to make two things that couldn't really be called dishes to make up the difference.

"Hmph, you can't even cook, what kind of woman are you?" Gao Feibai said disdainfully, arms crossed.

“Xiao Gao, you can’t say that—” Mu Zhihong glanced at Ye Sanqing and advised, “Women aren’t born knowing how to cook.”

He didn't want Ye Sanqing to have another attack during the meal, causing blood to boil and disrupting everyone's meal.

Moreover, Gao Feibai is the kind of person... to put it bluntly, there's no need for him to be polite to the other party. His hints now are just an attempt to curry favor with Ye Sanqing.

"Isn't that right? Shouldn't women cook, do housework, and take care of children? That's why I told you a long time ago! Retire from the entertainment industry and find a good man to marry!" Gao Feibai was completely oblivious to the implication in Mu Zhihong's words and continued speaking, turning to look at Deng Lingxuan.

Then, as expected, everyone heard that voice.

"Say it again?" Ye Sanqing suddenly appeared behind him and said quietly.

Gao Feibai was so startled that he jumped forward and almost bumped into the table. He turned around and was about to curse, but when he saw that it was Ye Sanqing, he immediately fell silent.

"Speak up, why aren't you saying anything? Are you just naturally quiet?"

"No... I didn't say anything just now, you must have misheard me," Gao Feibai said, putting on a fawning smile as he tried his best.

"What was that sound just now? Was it a dog barking?" Ye Jin'er asked.

"This dog is quite good at reading people's expressions; it quiets down as soon as someone makes a sound," Sheng Hanyu added.

He didn't know that because of those words, Gao Feibai, who originally had no impression of him, suddenly transferred his hatred to him.

Gao Feibai thought to himself, "If you want to be simps, why use me as a stepping stone? Ha! A bunch of useless losers who can't resist women. I'm the best; I'm not swayed by beauty at all!"

Ye Sanqing: "Good dog, good dog!"

Gao Feibai dared not utter a sound, but a smug expression was revealed on his face, though no one cared.

This group's score was naturally not very good. Although Ji Wan's cooking skills were passable, it was really hard to give a high score to something like a lettuce salad in the dead of winter.

Ji Wan: Never mind, as long as we get through this phase smoothly, it'll be over.

Finally, it was Cheng Yanye's group's turn, which was naturally led by chef Mu Zhihong, with Mu Zimo assisting in the cooking.

What they made was quite wintery, most notably a sukiyaki dish with steam rising from the bottom, which brought a sense of warmth even in the dead of winter.

Then there was the pan-fried hamburger patty, which was actually quite good, but it was overshadowed by Sheng Hanyu's cheese patty.

Despite losing to Sheng Hanyu, Mu Ziming was completely convinced of his inferiority. "Sigh, I was never as good at cooking as you before, and I still am. Have you been secretly practicing a lot these past few years?"

"No, it's just something I do often," Sheng Hanyu said with a smile.

Ye Sanqing also thought that the dish was acceptable on its own, but with such a masterpiece preceding it, there was nothing he could do.

Their other dishes included thick omelet, pan-fried steak, grilled salmon, sake-steamed clams, and miso soup—generally, dishes you'd find in a Japanese-style Western restaurant.

The taste was only slightly worse than Sheng Hanyu's group, and on par with Ye Sanqing's group. The number of dishes was also the same, but the teamwork score would determine the winner.

As for the cooperation... Cheng Yanye didn't lift a finger. Tong Wuyu was eager to show off, so even though she didn't know how, she helped with chores like washing vegetables.

After everyone finished giving their scores, they were free to eat, because they couldn't waste food, regardless of whether they were in front of the camera or not.

The final score announcement would take place after everyone finished eating, so Ye Wanyin took the opportunity to serve her homemade creamy garlic shrimp to Sheng Hanyu and the others.

"Teacher Sheng, I would like to ask you for your guidance. Is there any room for improvement in this dish?" Ye Wanyin asked cautiously, with a look of pride on her face.

Sheng Hanyu was eating Ye Sanqing's roasted chicken when she heard this. She glanced at her, then at the shrimp Ye Sanqing was holding, and shook her head. "I don't have any good advice on cooking. You'll get better with practice."

"Teacher Sheng, please try it." Ye Wanyin thought he was being modest, so she pushed the plate forward a little. "This is something I made with great care. Wouldn't it be a shame if you didn't try a bite?"

She has put all her life's knowledge into making this dish, so she is quite confident!

Sheng Hanyu: ?

He ignored the two jealous glances directed his way and said, "No need to taste it. I can tell from the smell that you used the wrong cream and the shrimp wasn't cooked properly. Didn't you even take a bite yourself before letting others taste it?"

Ye Sanqing, who was eating a pork chop, chuckled upon hearing this, "It's a good thing I didn't let her get involved, otherwise this would have been terrible! Ye Wanyin, are you trying to ruin our group's score by cooking such awful dishes?"

"Wow? That's amazing! You can tell so clearly just by smelling it?"

I think Xiao Sheng was just being polite. In reality, a truly masterful chef can tell the taste just by looking at the appearance and color of the dish.

[That's right, my grandpa has been a Western chef for decades. He just said that Xiao Sheng's dishes are top-notch in their industry, while Ye Wanyin's...]

Don't leave things unsaid!

He didn't say anything, just shook his head, probably because he felt it was a waste of ingredients...

【I don't believe it! You're just targeting Wanwan, trying to smear her. You've even brought up things like being a chef with decades of experience. Do you have any evidence?】

Why should I prove myself? I've already stated my position, and besides, didn't Teacher Sheng also say she wasn't good enough?

Do people who engage in gang bullying deserve to be called teachers?

"..." Ye Wanyin couldn't believe that her skills were really that bad, but she couldn't possibly stuff food into someone's mouth, so she could only stand there, holding the plate.

Cheng Yanye immediately went over to comfort her, "Wanwan, don't listen to them! Just forget it, they don't even care about us, why bother trying to please them? If they won't eat, I'll eat!"

Ye Wanyin didn't want Cheng Yanye to eat it; in fact, she was a little angry with him.

Who is it that always praises the food she cooks? If it's not good, why say such things? It prevents her from improving at all, yet she's still complacent. Has she lost her sense of taste?

"Sister, I can eat it too." Ye Siqing came over to comfort her when she saw this.

He took a bite, and well... it didn't seem to have any major flaws, but it certainly wasn't good. He didn't know if the cream was right or not, but the shrimp was definitely overcooked.

But faced with Ye Wanyin's expectant gaze, he couldn't bring himself to criticize her. He simply said, "It's very good. Sister did much better than me."

Ye Wanyin was not happy at all when she heard this!

What? Does he mean that the finished product was praised by everyone because Ye Sanqing played a big role in the actual cooking?

"This is infuriating!" Ye Wanyin stomped her foot and walked away unhappily.

Ye Siqing was left standing there wondering: Was it wrong to praise her?

Tong Wuyu pretended to accompany Mu Zimo, without glancing in their direction.

She had something more important to do than comfort Ye Wanyin: while cooking, she discovered that Mu Zimo was actually a pretty good person.

She is skilled at cooking Western and Japanese food, and seems to have a gentle temperament (although her attitude towards her was somewhat cold, she assumed it was because they weren't familiar with each other). She is highly educated and has her own career. Although she is not as outstanding as a celebrity, she is considered above average among normal people, and she also comes from a well-off family...

A man like that could be considered high-quality, right?

Moreover, and most importantly, he was someone Ye Wanyin couldn't control.

Tong Wuyu felt that if she wanted to get rid of Ye Wanyin's shadow, it would be more worthwhile to look for a man outside of her circle than to look within it.

If you win his favor now and then stay in the same room at night, wouldn't many things fall into place naturally?

Sure enough, one still has to rely on oneself. Tong Wuyu was extremely grateful that she had come to this program.

Mu Zhihong carried the steak to Ye Sanqing.

"I noticed that Miss Ye has a particular fondness for meat, so I brought it over for you." He smiled very politely, placed the plate on the table next to Ye Sanqing, and left without insisting.

Ye Sanqing looked at Sheng Hanyu, and only after the other party nodded did he pick up the food to eat.

She didn't think Mu Zhihong would do anything underhanded in such a public setting; she was simply assessing whether the food was worth eating.

She had only taken a small bite and hadn't really savored the steak.

After all, even though her stomach capacity is large, it is still limited!

She wanted to eat more of the braised goose she made herself in an iron pot!